Page Text: $50 AngelFull access, Word list Downloads
$20 Regular UserAll pages, Limited Finder
$10 Casual UserStudents & Seniors
2. Choose how to pay
Rachel Simon notes:
I'm Rachel, a writer and editor from Raleigh, NC, whose book Pickleball For All (HarperCollins) is out this August. While I've written ... read more
I'm Rachel, a writer and editor from Raleigh, NC, whose book Pickleball For All (HarperCollins) is out this August. While I've written stories for The New York Times (among many other outlets) before, this is my first puzzle in the paper and my first published puzzle anywhere!
I'm so grateful for the opportunity, and I owe Robyn Weintraub , crossword constructor extraordinaire and my hometown next-door neighbor, a huge thank you for helping me hone my idea and rooting me on.
I hope you all have fun "picking up" on the theme and that this puzzle is the first of many I publish in the NYT!
Jeff Chen notes:
Most editors have now turned their backs on "words that can follow X" themes. Getting one past the NYT's 4% acceptance rate takes ... read more
Most editors have now turned their backs on "words that can follow X" themes. Getting one past the NYT's 4% acceptance rate takes something special. Today's debut does a lot toward doing just that.
The most notable feature is the tightness of the PICKUP theme. How many other words besides LINES, GAMES, TRUCKS, STICKS, can you think of that can fill in "PICKUP ___"? I banged my head for 30 minutes but could only dig up JOINTS and ARTISTS. That limited set creates a sense of elegance.
There are other elements that help the theme pick up steam. (PICK UP STEAM doesn't fit the theme because "pick up steam" isn't a noun.) Note that Rachel was careful to put all her keywords in plural form for solid consistency.
A couple of fantastic clues, too. [Record holder] is a Friday-level wordplay clue that so innocently misleads. Thanks to the easy crossings, newer solvers experience the joy of figuring out that a record SLEEVE is the answer; nothing to do with an Olympic record holder.
A few FAULT LINES, like the central diagonal nearly splitting the puzzle in half and an ANNEE / LEA crossing could trip up newer solvers. However, Rachel did a lot to elevate her puzzle. I don't want to see more than one or two "words that can follow X" puzzles in a year, but this is the type that I welcome.
Jim Horne notes: